Keepsakes, the alias of British-New Zealand producer and DJ James Barrett, has been a strong and distinctive voice in techno since rising to fame through his StygianConcrete Works and Weapons Grade Manic EPs back in 2014. Since then he has showcased his powerful and menacing, yet often cheeky and playful, productions on influential labels including Boys Noize Records, Turbo Recordings, KAOS/OAKS,Perc Trax, South London Analogue Material, MORD, and Earwiggle.

Furthermore, he founded the Haven club night alongside Jaded Nineties Raver inTāmaki Maraukau, Aotearoa (Auckland, New Zealand) in 2015 - aiming to introduce clubbers to the experimental and harder side of techno in a city completely devoid of this music. In 2018 Haven also expanded into a vinyl-focused record label - going onto release many leading international artists including VTSS, Tommy Holohan, NewFrames, Peder Mannerfelt, Ayarcana, Ansome, and Ryan James Ford, as well as becoming the main home for Barrett’s own productions.

Now located in Ōtautahi, Aotearoa (Christchurch, New Zealand) - following severalyears living in Berlin hitting the European club circuit - he is focused on bringing histough and eclectic sound to dance floors worldwide, with regular appearances at international techno institutions, including Tresor, RSO, and London’s Fold, providing a platform for his formidable DJ sets.

Here is our interview to see what he’s bringing to the Cobb and what he’s been up to:

How would you describe your sound at the moment and what are you excited to bring to the Cobb?

These days I'm pretty focused on straight-up techno but I do love to bring in elements from break-beat, trance, experimental and beyond into my sets. I'm pretty excited to see how the crowd reacts to weird alien noises through the set!!

How was the Europe tour this year, any standout moments?

It was super hectic but great fun! I played every weekend for 3 months so it was pretty non-stop. Definitely playing at legendary Berlin club Tresor twice and also Fold in London were big highlights. I also played all-night in Hannover for 7-8 hours which was quite special too!

What are some of the main similarities or differences you notice between our scene in Aotearoa and others around the globe?

Aotearoa's scene is definitely a bit more focused on the local, given we're so far from where a lot of the action happens in dance music. I actually think it's a pretty cool thing as it makes our scene a bit more unique compared to what you see in Europe sometimes.

The thing that's the same across the world is that people always respond to good parties being organised with a good ethos behind them and a decent musical line-up. From Twisted to the Berlin club scene these things stay quite popular when they get all the ingredients right.

What would you like to see more of within the dance communities of Aotearoa?

It would be amazing to have more dedicated club spaces - which is really something we're lacking in every city across the country right now! It does give our scene a nice DIY flavour, but it would be great to have more spaces that our dance music communities could call home.

Haven’s been going hard this year - what is Haven and why do you choose to set up in Ōtautahi?

Haven is a party I co-founded with my partner Marie and our friend Tom in Tāmaki Makaurau in 2015. We eventually developed this into a record label in 2018 and went on to release the likes of VTSS, Tommy Holohan, Ryan James Ford, Peder Mannerfelt and many more. Now we're based in Ōtautahi since moving here in 2021.

I think Ōtautahi is full of potential as a city - the whole dance music scene is really popping off here right now, it's rare I've seen a dead party over the past year. Even though we lost Flux earlier this year it still feels like there's a lot of growth right now and interest in underground parties and the creative scene just keeps growing with a lot of people from around the country moving down here.

Pretty big year of releases for you - anything new we can be excited for?

I can tease that I have an EP coming on HAVEN around April! Otherwise right now I'm focusing on the first stages of sound design in the studio for my next tracks right now and hope to have another record ready to go by the time the next one comes out.

Where can people catch you around the motu over summer?

It's one of my busiest summers yet this year. I've got sets at Twisted, Lakes Festival, Kōwhai Grove, Frontal Globe, and TwoMinds Festival as well as club sets in Tāmaki Makaurau, Te-Whanganui-a-Tara, and Ōtautahi. We've also got a ton of Haven events in Ōtautahi that I will be at every single one of even if I'm not playing!

What attracts you to keep coming back to Twisted for new years?

It's hands-down one of my favourite parties to both play and attend on the planet. The vibe, the location, the sound-systems, and the music are all top tier. Even if I wasn't playing I'd still want to come and have fun!!

Check out his set at Twisted!